Gas-engine.



M. SEGUIN.

GAS ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. I1. 1911.

Patented June 13, 1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

Inventor:

Atty.

M. SEGUIN.

I GAS ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED'INOV. 11, 1911.

1 1 86 950 Patented June 13, 1916.-

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII M Inventor."

b yd Atty License.

' ED STATES PATENT enrich};

mac snecm, or er. toms, mrssoum. 1

Gas-Enema To all whom it may concern:

Be it known: that I, MARC SEQUIN, a

1 citizen of the Republic of France, and resident of the city ofStLouis, in the State of Missouri, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Gas-Engines, of

which the following is a specificatiom My invention relates tear gasengine of the turbine type, and has for its object to provide a apractical gas turbine in which the ratio of negat1ve work to grosswork,or loss of energy due to change in direction of motion and to frictionboth of its mechanical parts and of the to aminimum.

The main advantages of a rotary over'a gaseous fuel,is reducedreciprocating engine .are continuity of been delivered to and fired in aseparate stationary combustion chamber or chambers arranged to dischargethe products of combustionthrough a nozzle against the blades of theturbine; and since, for a satisfac: tory degree of'compression, therotor element of the compressor must have a high velocity, which impliesthat the gaseous fuel must also move with great velocity, the

' amount of energy absorbed and wasted when these swiftly moving gasesare delivered into a stationary combustion chamber, by

which the direction of their motion is' first changed and then thatmotion stopped altogether and in which the compression of the gasesnecessarily becomes considerably .re-

duced, has been such as to more than counterbalance whatever otheradvantages such a compressor might possess. Moreover, the constantvolume or explosion cycle, upon which practically all mcdernreciprocating engines operate, has thus far proven oflittle practicaluse in a gas turbine, because the. stationary combustion chambers couldSpecification of Letters Patient. I

Application filed November 11, 1911. Serial No. 659,677.

'not be charged andlfired. with rapidity to prevent an unsteady torque.due

Patented June 13, 1916. y'-

to the necessarily intermittent action ofsuch V a cycle and theconsequent varying pressures and velocities of the gases.

In order 'that it may show an efiiciency Y which Wlll make it of,vpractical commercial value it is believed that a gas turbine, whetheroperated on the constant volume-or constant pressure cycle, must satisfythe following conditions: The rotor of the com-' pressor must revolve athigh speed, otherwise there will be'no compression oil" the gaseousfuel. The combined rotary and-radial motion of the gases, once started,must be kept up without interference and with a gradual acceleration,.whihimplies that all passages which would change thedirection of orotherwise tend to check their motion and all valves, reciprocatingparts, etc.,-must be eliminated. The compression must be gradual andcontinuous. And the gases must e fired and caused to expand while, theyare at their maximum speed and compres:

sion.

My invention therefore comprises broadly,

has its principal feature, what I will call a rotary compressor, inwhich the gaseousfuel,

drawn therein at atmospheric pressure or partially compressed, is thrownoutwardly by the action of centrifugal force into the inner end'of arevolving combustion chamber or chambers and the fuel charge within thechamber, compressed by centrifugal force, is, at. one or more givenpoints'in the revolution. of the chamber and while at its maximum speedand compression, fired and expanded'against the blades or set of bladesof .a turbine suitably mounted either concentric with or eccentric tothe axis of the compressor.

More specifically, this feature of my invention includes a rotor whichhas a series of peripheral combustion chambers, open at their inner andouter'ends, and a series of radially disposed blades or partitionsforming passages extending outwardly from near its center substantiallyto the inner ends of v the combustion chambers;and, in its present form,I inclose this rotor element in & fixed-:1

outer casing which comprises angupperiand" lower wall,vthe latterprovided with seentrally located inlet'opening for'the admis- 5 adaptedto close the outer ends of the combustion chambers except as it is.cutaway or provided wlth a nozzle at the point or points where the fuelcharges are to be fired and an innersectional rim or rims lpcatedsubstantially opposite the openings 1n the outer rim and adapted toclose the inner ends of the combustlon chambers when their outer endsare open, and provide an ignition system in connection with the inner orfiring rim by which to fire the compressed.

charges within the combustion ,chambers at the proper time.

The invention also comprises the other novel features of constructionand combination of parts hereinafter described and particularly pointedout inthe claims.

In the accompanying drawings, wherein the same parts are indicatedthroughout by the same reference characters, Figure 1 is a sectionalview, on the line 1 1 of Fig. 2, of a rotary compressor with aturbinewheel mounted concentric therewith, illustrating one specificembodiment of my invention; Fig. 2, a sectional view of the same, on theline 2 2 of Fig. .1, with part of the upper wall of the rotor element ofthe compressor broken away to show the construction; Fig; 3, a brokendetail showing, in perspective, the construction of the rotor; Figs. 4and 5, enlarged broken sections on the lines 4 4 and 5 5 of Fig. 2,respectively; and Fig. 6, a

"broken detail showing, in perspective, a part of the casing of thecompressor.

Referring to the drawings, P designates the rotary compressor, with itsrotor R and easing, C, and T the turbine, which constitute the principalparts of my improved gas turbine.

In the form illustrated in Figs. 1 to6, the compressor casing consistsof a circular bottom plate or wall 10 and top plate or wall 11 and anouter peripheral rim 12 which unites the edges of the two plates andconstitutes the si wall, inclined downwardly in a gradually increasingcurve from its periphery to a central opening 13 to which is attachedthe end of an inlet-pipe 14 for the admission of the gaseous fuel from acarburet'er or other suitable source of supply, is mounted upon supports15 and carrles the entire engine.

The upper casing wall is fiat and is pro vided witha centralopenirig'which forms a bearing for the rotor as hereinafter described.The rim is out away at one ormore points, here shown as twodiametrically op posite each other, to form openings. or nozzles 16through which the products of combustion are ischarged against theblades of the turbine wheel T. Opposite each of these openings in theouter rim is an inner e wall .of the casing.- The bottom the same lengthas the discharge opening but located somewhat in advance thereof withrespect to the direction of rotation of the rotor R, and is mounted uponthe lower wall of the casing and at its upper edge terminates in aninwardly projecting flange 18 which extends, parallel to and a shortdis- ,way of its hei ht and substantially opposectional or firing rim17, of substantially tance below the upper casing wall. Each of site theforwar edge of the discharge 0 en- 4 ing and which is electricallyconnecte. by wire .20 to binding-post 21 on the under side of the bottomcasing wall and thence to any suitable source of electrical energy.Provision may be made for advancing or retarding the firing of the fuelcharge by any .suitable means for the forward and backward adjustmenteither of the firing rims upon the lower wall of the casing or of theignition device upon the firing rims.

The rotor element of the compressor, which comprises a series ofradially disposed and forwardly curved fuel passages 22, terminatingoutwardly in combustion chambers 23, and intermediate water chambers 24,forming part of a water cooling system, consists of a flat disk 25 onthe under side of which are secured the curved blades 26. These bladesare cut away at 26, immediately behind the inner end of the combustionchambers, so that they may move over and past theinner firing rims ofthe casing. An annular plate 27, secured to the lower edges of theblades,

,closes the lower side of the combustion as well as the water chambers.The fuel channels are ,left open along their lower sides; but the waterchambers are inclosed by bottom plates 28, which fit over and around thespace left for the inner firing 'rims and are secured at their outerends to the inner edge of plate 27, leaving narrow channels 29 toconnect the inner and outer portions of the chambers, and by curved endplates 30. Narrow channels 31, in the upper walls of the combustionchambers, connect together the two adjacent water chambers, and similarchannels may, if de sired, be provided in the lower wall of thechambers. At the axis of the rotor, a cylindrical cup 32, the upper endof which may be provided with any suitable radiating surface, is securedwithin a central opening in the plate 25'and to the inner end of theblades26, and is connected with the water chambers through openings-;.33. The rotor is mounted within the caslng by means of a shaft 34,which is fixed 1n the bottom of the cylindrical cup'and is stepped atits lower end 'in a bearing 35, supported upon a spider-bracket 66attach d to the lower wall of the casing, and by a bearin 37 formedbetween the outside of the cylindrical cu -the periphery of thecompressor, should fit,

and the circular opening in the upper wa l of the casing. The upper endof the shaft may .also be provided, if found desirable, with anadditional I bearing in a spider: bracket 38, attached to the upper wallof the casing. Ball-bearings should be pro-' vided in all cases.

rotor shouldnot come into contact with the The outer walls of the innerwalls of the casing, but the adjacent fixed and rotating surfaces,particularly at each other as closely as possible without ac- .tualcontact; and to minimize theleakage and prevent back-firing one or bothof the adjacent surfaces of the casing and rotor are grooved, as at 10*,12, 179, 18, 27, 28, and 30, toprovide an air-packing for these openjoints in the vicinity of the points where the charges in thecombustion.

chambers are fired. The curvature of the rotor blades gives themagradually increasing forward inclination which effects a gradualacceleration in the angular and hence rotative speed of the fuel as itis forced outwardly through the fuel passages,

and the curvature should be such as to give as possible in the directionof their movement and consequently reducing losses of energy throughfriction to a minimum.

The turbine wheel, comprising acentral hub 40, and radiating arms 41which support an annular rim 42 provided with suitable depending blades43, arranged in one or more stages as may be founddesirable, ismountedupon the upper end ,of the rotorshaft 35, or upon an upwardextension 34 which is coupled thereto, as at 44, either directly orbymeans of a differential speed gearing. Y

In operation, the fuel valve having been opened and the engine cranked,the rotor draws the fuel through-the inlet opening into the casing ofthe compressor, either at atmospheric pressure or under an 1n1t1alcompression, and forces it out, with a continuous and graduallyincreasing compression, through the fuel passages into the compressionchambers, within which it is confined by the outer caslng r1m.. Then, as

i the combustion chambers successively pass the forward end of, an innerfiring rim, the

inner end of each is first closed thereby, cutting off the fuel chargetherein from the supply passage, and immediately thereafter :the chamberreaches the discharge opening,

whereupon the ignition device fires the v charge and the products ofcombustion, suddenly expanded, strike with dynamic force against theblades of the turbine wheel which is caused to revolve and in turncommunicates its motion to the rotor of the compressor. After its,charge has been fired, each revolving chamber will first reach the rearend of the firing rim, whereupon the fuel from the communicating fuelpassage will rush into and through it, clearingit of all burnt gases,andthen its outer end will again be closed by the outer rim and itwillreceive another fuel charge, which will in turn be cut oil from thesupply and fired when the chamber reaches the next firing rim anddischarge opening. As the engine speeds-up, the fuel charges will bemore and more compressed within the combustion chambers, and the dynamicforce of their combustion will .have increasg While' the engine isrunning there will be a constant circulation of'water through the watercooling s'ystem,'sincethe coolerwater will, because of its greaterdensity, be forced out to the periphery of the rotor, displacing thewater which has become heated aroundand between the combustion chambersand driving it back to the center of the compressor, where it will be.cooled and again forced, outwardly. 9

It may of course be found possible to simplify or otherwise improve thewater cooling system .hereinabove described, or even to dispense with italtogether.

While I have hereinabove explained the principle of my invention andhave specifically illustrated and described the best mode in which Ihave thus'far contemplated applying that principle, it will beunderstood that the invention may be variously modified in its details,suchas the construction, form, proportions, and arrangement of itsseveral a parts without departing from the spirit or sacrificing theadvantages thereof. Such other modifications may also be made as fallwithin the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A gas engine comprising asanelement a rotor whose walls form aradially disposed passage which extends outwardly without interruptionor restriction from near its center to itsperiphery, and is adapted, incombination with a Suitable stator element, to form a compression andcombustion chamber. I

2. .A gas engine comprising as an element a rotor whose" walls form aradially disposed passage which extends outwardly without interruptionor restriction from near its center to its periphery and which is openonlone side for the inner portion and is closed on all sides for theouterportion of its length.

3. A gas engine comprising as an element 130' v rotor whose walls form aradially disnear its center to its periphery and is curved so as to havea gradually increasing forward .-inclinatioh from its inner to its outerend.

4. A gas engine comprising as an element a rotor whose walls form aperipheral chamber which is open at its inner andouter ends and. aradially disposedpass'age which extends outwardly from near the centerof the rotor to and except periodically in its rotation communicateswithout interruption or .restriction withthe inner end of the chamber.

5. A gas engine comprising as an element a rotor whose walls form aperipheral chamber which is open at its inner and outer ends and has aforward inclination with respect to its direction of rotation and apassage which extends with a forward curvature from neon-the centerofthe rotor to and except periodically in its rotation communicate'suninterruptedly with the inner end of the peripheral chamber.

6. A gas engine com rising as an element a rotor with radially isposedblades forming a series of passages which extend outwardly withoutabrupt change in the direction of their walls or in their sectionalareafrom'nearthe center to the periphery of the rotor, the'outer portions ofsaid passages being closed on four sides to constitute open endedperipheral chambers.

"Z. A gas englne comprising as an element a rotor with radially disposedcurved blades formin a series of passages which extend outwar ly with agradually increasing forward inclination from near the center to theperiphery of the rotor, the outer end porpassages being closed on foursldes'to constitute a series of open ended peripheral chambers.

8. A gas engine comprlsing, in combination, a rotor with walls forming aplurality of (peripheral chambers open at their inner an outer ends anda plurality of radially disposed passages each'extending outwardly fromnear the center to and except periodically communicatin uninterruptedlywith the inner end of ac amber, means for supplying fuel to saidpassages, means-for'clos-.

mg the outer ends. of said chambers except at one or more pointsin theirrevolution, and means for closing the inner ends of and firing the fuelcharge within said chambers at a point or points in suitable relation tothe unclosing period of their outer ends.

9. A gas engine comprising, in combination, a rotor with walls forming aplurality of (peripheral chambers open at their inner outer ends andradially disposed gas passages extending outwardly from near its centerto and except periodically communicating uninterruptediy with the innerends of the chambers and a stationary casing which incloses the rotorand is provided v with a centrally located inlet opening adapted toadmitfuel to the inner ends of said gas passages, an outer peripheralrim adapt-t ed to close the outer ends of said chambers except at one ormore points where saidrim is cut away to provide a discharge opening, aninner segmental rim adapted to close the inner end of each ofsaidchambers when its outer end is in proximity to a discharge opening inthe outer run, and means for lgnltin the fuel charge within each of saidchain ers at suitably tuned intervals.

10. A gas engine comprising as elements a rotor whose walls form aplurality of foradmission of fuel to the inner ends of the radiallydisposed passages of the rotor and a closure for the outer ends of thechambers of the rotor except at oneor more points in its revolutionwhere a discharge opening is provided and at such point or points aclosure for the inner ends of the chambers.

11. A gas engine comprising, in combination, a rotor containing a seriesof peri heral combustion chambers which are on wardiy inclined fromtheir inner to'their outer ends and are open at such ends and means forsupplying a gaseous fuel" to the inner ends of said combustion chambersby the action of centrifugal force and with a rotative speed which isradually accelerated until it equals that o? the inner ends of saidcombustion chambers, stationary means for closin theouter ends of saidcombustion cham ers except at one or more given points in theirrevolution and at such point or points closin their inner ends, andmeans for firing the %uel charge in each of said combustion chambers atintervals suitably timed with respect to the closin of its inner andunclosing of its outer en 12. A gas engine comprising, in combination. arotor having formed therein a series of peripheral combustion chamberswhich ambers and a casing for said. rotor. which has an inlet openinadapted to admit fuel to the inner ends 0 'said' fuel passages and wallsadapted to close the outer ends of said combustion chambers except atone or more suitablegpoints' in their revolution at which y increasingrotative I speed to the inner ends of the combustion C.

thecasing is provided with adischarge opening and to close the innerends of and fire the fuel charge within said combustion chambers whentheir outer ends are in suitable relation with a discharge opening.

- points in their revolution, means for closing the inner ends of saidcombustion chambers and for firing the fuel charges therein at a pointor points suitably located with respect to the unclosing of their outerends, and a water tank provided with radiating surfaces andcommunicating with the inner ends of said water chambers.

. 14. In a gas engine, the combination of a rotor containing aperipheral combustion chamber open at its inner and outer ends and aradially disposed passage adapted to receive fueland carry it outwardlyto the inner end of the combustion chamber, a

stationary casing having an inlet opening adaptedto admitthe fuel to theinner end of said fuel passage and walls ada ted to close the outer endof said com ustion chamber except at a given point in its revolution andat such vpoint to close its inner end, means for firing the fuel chargewitliin said combustion chamber at intervals suitably timed with respectto the closing of its inner and unclosmg of its outer ends, and aturbine mounted so that its blades shall pass in closeproximity to theouter end of said combustion chamber at the point where its fuel chargeis fired and connect ed to rotate with the rotor.

In a

I of' fradi-ally' disposed fuel to close the outer en passagesextendingoutwaidl from near its center to and except perio icallycommunicatingunin'terruptedly with the inner ends of the chambers, acasing having a centrally located inlet opening connected with a fuelsupply and adapted to admit fuel to the inner ends of saidfueLpassagesan outer rim adapted ds of said chambers except at a pointor (points where it is cut away to provide a ischarge opening, and asegmental inner firingrun suitably locate substantially opposite thepointy or points where the outer end is cut away and adaptedto close theinner end of said chambers and to fire the fuel charge therein, and aturbine mounted concentrieand gas engine, the combination of fa'r'otorhavmg formed therein a. series of vperipheral chambers open at theirouterproximity to the outer rim- 'fuel passages 22 and forwardlyinclined combustion chambers 23 and a, casin provided with inlet anddischarge openings and means for closin theouter ends of said combustioncham ers except at such discharge opening and means at said open ing forclosingfthe inner ends of said combustion cham rs, the said. turbinebeing so mounted as to'receive upon its blades the products ofcombustion from said dischar e opening and connected to rotate .withsald rotor. \Y 17. The combination with the turbine T of the rotarycompressor P, the said rotary compressor comprising the rotor R withfuel'passages 22 and combustion chambers 23 and the casing C with inletopening13, outward peripheral rim 12 cut away to form openings 16 andinner firing rims 17' carrying ignition devices 19, substantially asdescribed.

18. In a as engine, the combination of a turbine an a rotor elementconnected to rotate with the turbine and provided with a series ofradially disposed-passages which are without abrupt change in' thedirection of their walls and in theirsectional area and are adapted toreceive a supply of gaseous fuel. at their inner ends near the center ofthe rotor element, to carry such fuel outwardly without abrupt change inthe velocity of its movement, to provide chambers within which to firethe fuel, and

to discharge the products of combustion through their 0 en outer endsagainst the blades of the tur ine.

1 19. In a gas engine, the combination of a turbine, a rotor providedwith a series of radially disposed passages which extend .outwardly fromnear the center to the periphery of the rotor without abrupt change I inthe direction of their walls and are open at their .outer ends, meansfor supplying gaseous fuel to the innerends of the passages in therotor, and means for firingsaid fuel within the outer ends of saidpassages, the rotor being connected to rotate the center to theperiphery of the rotor "I i with a gradually increasing inclination for-.,.wardly 1n the direction of its rotation,

with the turbine and discharging the prodnets of combustion from theopen outer ends of said passages again turbine.

Witnessesi I H. J.'HARMS,

J; B. BLACK.

st the blades of the MARC SEGUIN.

